Electrical hair iron

ABSTRACT

A hair iron includes a first elongated bar and a second elongated bar. The first elongated bar includes a first iron portion, a first fulcrum portion and a first grip portion, wherein the first iron portion includes a first heating pad where hair is to be ironed, and the first iron portion and the first grip portion are connected to and disposed at opposite sides of the first fulcrum portion. The second elongated bar engages with and is pivotally rotatable relative to the first elongated bar, and includes a second iron portion, a second fulcrum portion and a second grip portion, wherein the second iron portion includes a second heating pad that cooperates with the first heating pad to iron hair, and the second iron portion and the second grip portion are connected to and disposed at opposite sides of the second fulcrum portion. A first bending angle exists between the first iron portion and the first fulcrum portion, and a second bending angle exists between the second iron portion and the second fulcrum portion.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a nonprovisional application claiming benefitfrom a prior-filed provisional application bearing a Ser. No. 62/831,944and filed Apr. 10, 2019, the entity of which is incorporated herein forreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a hair iron, and more particularly to ahandheld electrical hair iron.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Unlike standing or hanging hair curlers, which are used in combinationwith hair rollers and heating hoods, hand-held hair irons can directlysupply heat to hair for rapid local hair styling. In other words, theyhave advantages of being light, convenient and fast. FIG. 1Aschematically illustrates a conventional hair iron. The hair ironincludes an upper arm 91 and a lower arm 92, which are pivotallyconnected to each other at a pivot 93 with respective ends. The pivot 93also serves as a fulcrum for operating the hair iron. After the hairportion to be styled is placed into a space between a heating pad 911 ofthe upper arm 91 and a heating pad 921 of the lower arm 92, a userapplies an input forces at the effort points 912 and 922 on the upperand lower arms 91 and 92 to press the upper and lower arms 91 and 92toward each other so that the hair portion to be styled can be clampedat the load points 913 and 923 and heated by the heating pads 911 and912. Since the distance between the effort point 912 or 922 and thefulcrum 93, i.e. the effort arm, is generally much shorter than thedistance between the load point 913 or 923 and the fulcrum 93, i.e. theload arm, the force mechanical advantage is much less than 1 and such ahair iron is hard to be operated, as illustrated in the scheme of FIG.1B. Especially the user usually needs to raise his or her arms up to alevel higher than his or her shoulder with an open-arm posture, the userlikely feels tired and uncomfortable after a long-term use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a hand-heldhair iron that can be easily and conveniently operated to achieve thedesired ironing effect.

The present invention further provides a hand-held hair iron thatconforms to the ordinary thinking mode and operational habit of users.

The present invention relates to a hand-held hair iron. The hair ironincludes a first elongated bar and a second elongated bar. The firstelongated bar includes a first iron portion, a first fulcrum portion anda first grip portion, wherein the first iron portion includes a firstheating pad where hair is to be ironed, and the first iron portion andthe first grip portion are connected to and disposed at opposite sidesof the first fulcrum portion. The second elongated bar engages with andis pivotally rotatable relative to the first elongated bar, and includesa second iron portion, a second fulcrum portion and a second gripportion, wherein the second iron portion includes a second heating padthat cooperates with the first heating pad to iron hair, and the secondiron portion and the second grip portion are connected to and disposedat opposite sides of the second fulcrum portion. A first bending angleexists between the first iron portion and the first fulcrum portion, anda second bending angle exists between the second iron portion and thesecond fulcrum portion.

A hand-held hair iron designed according to the present invention iseasy to operate by disposing the effort and the load on opposite sidesof the fulcrum. Furthermore, because the handle is far away from theheating place when the hair iron is operated, the risks of burning thehand can be avoided. In addition, the laboring can be saved by makingthe effort arm longer than the load arm.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above contents of the present invention will become more readilyapparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art after reviewing thefollowing detailed description and accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic diagrams illustrating a conventional hairiron and how the hair iron is operated;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are schematic diagrams illustrating a hair ironaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of heating padsincluded in the hair iron of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram illustrating a hair iron according toanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram illustrating a use of the hair iron ofFIG. 3A;

FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram illustrating a hair iron according to afurther embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram illustrating a use of the hair iron ofFIG. 4A;

FIG. 4C is a schematic diagram illustrating a use of the hair iron ofFIG. 3A;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of grip portionsincluded in a hair iron according to the present invention; and

FIGS. 6A and 6B are schematic diagrams illustrating examples of a safetylock included in a hair iron according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The invention will now be described more specifically with reference tothe following embodiments. It is to be noted that the followingdescriptions of preferred embodiments of this invention are presentedherein for purpose of illustration and description only. It is notintended to be exhaustive or to be limited to the precise formdisclosed.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are respectively schematic views showing the standbystate and the operational state of the hand-held hair iron according toa first embodiment of the present invention. The hand-held hair iron inthis embodiment includes an iron portion 11, a fulcrum portion 12, agrip portion 13, and a positioning portion 14. The iron portion 11, thefulcrum portion 12, and the grip portion 13 are assembled and positionedthrough the positioning portion 14. The user can conduct the stateswitching of the hand-held hair iron by controlling the grip portion 13to pivot the iron portion 11 relative to the fulcrum portion 12, whichwill be detailed later.

The iron portion 11 includes a pair of shell plates 111 and 112 that canbe moved relative to each other to open or close the iron portion 11,and one or more electric heating pads 113 and 114 are respectivelymounted on the inner sides of the two shell plates 111 and 112. Electriccurrent from a battery or a commercial power can be supplied to theelectric heating pads 113 and 114, and is converted into a heat energyoutput for styling a hair portion in contact therewith. The shell plates111 and 112 are made of a heat-insulating and preferably heat-resistantmaterial, such as plastic, and are provided with heat-insulating sleevesor heat-insulating outer layers 1101 and 1102 at the front ends thereof.When the user manipulates the grip portion 13 with one hand, another onehand can hold the heat-insulating sleeves or heat-insulating outerlayers 1101 and 1102 to assist in positioning the hair iron on hair, orpulling the hair iron along hair. The electric heating pads 113 and 114are made of a heat conductive and heat resistant material such as metal,ceramic, or glass. The shapes of the electric heating pads 113, 114 canbe designed according to practical applications. For example, the twoheating pads 113 and 114 are both plate-shaped, or conformallysine-wave-shaped, zigzag-shaped or the square-wave-shaped. Inalternative embodiments, the two heating pads 113 and 114 may bedifferent in shape, or a plurality of different shapes of heating pads113 and 114 may be combined on the same surface to create differentstyling effects. For example, in the embodiment of the hair iron shownin FIG. 2C, the electric heating pad 113 has a hemispherical concaveshape, and the electric heating pad 114 has a hemispherical convexshape, and the two hemispheres can be combined to form an applicationexample of the curvature of hair. In another embodiment, the electricheating pads 113 and 114 can also be detachably assembled to the shellplates 111 and 112 so that the same hair iron can be used to makevariations of hair styles by replacing the electric heating pads 113 and114. If the use of the hair iron requires adjustment of position afterclamping hair, the electric heating pads 113, 114 preferably have asmooth surface for easy sliding.

The grip portion 13 is made of a heat insulating material, for example,the same material as the shell plates 111 and 112, or has heatinsulating outer layers 130, which protect user's hands from burns whenthe user holds the grip portion 13 with one or both hands to performhair ironing operation. The grip portion 13 includes a pair of effortarms 131 and 132 that are movable relative to each other. The user canmake the shell plates 111 and 112 of the iron portion 11 closer to oraway from each other by manipulating the two effort arms 131 and 132toward or away from each other. Thereby, the iron portion 11 is broughtinto a state of being closed or opened.

In the present invention, the grip portion 13 and the iron portion 11are respectively located on both sides of the fulcrum portion 12, andare connected and coupled through the fulcrum portion 12, wherein thefulcrum portion 121 includes the first portion 121 near the side of theiron portion 11 and the second portion 122 near the side of the gripportion 13. More specifically, the upper and lower shell plates 111 and112 of the iron portion 11 and the two effort arms 132 and 131 of thegrip portion 13 are connected through the two portions 121 and 122 ofthe fulcrum portion 12, and are connected in such a manner that theshell plates 111 and 112 move toward each other as a result of themovement of the two arms 131 and 132 toward each other, and when the twoarms 131 and 132 are apart from each other, the shell plates 111 and 112are also apart from each other. Such a design is closer to the ordinarythinking mode and operational habit compared to the conventional hairiron. In addition, in general, clamping through compression is easierand more effective than clamping through expansion, and may have betterstyling efficiency and effect. The positioning portion 14 of the presentembodiment includes a compression spring 141 connected to the two effortarms 131, 132, in order to open the shell plates 111 and 112 withoutpushing the arms away from the two arms 131 and 132. Between the twoarms 131 and 132, a distance corresponding to the original length of thecompression spring 141 is maintained between the two effort arms 131 and132. At this time, the shell plates 111 and 112 of the iron portion 11are also in an open state which is farthest apart from each other. Whenthe user applies an effort to press the two arm arms 131 and 132, thecompression spring 141 is also compressed and twisted, and the shellplates 111 and 112 of the iron portion 11 are also in a closed state inwhich they approach each other. Thereafter, when the user releases thegrip portion 13, the elastic restoring force of the compression spring141 pushes the two effort arms 131 and 132, and the iron portion 11 canbe returned to the open state.

In order to achieve the synchronized opening and closing between theiron portion 11 and the grip portion 13, the shell plate 111 of the ironportion 11, the first portion 121 and the second portion 122 of thefulcrum portion 12, and the effort arm 131 of the grip portion 13 areintegrated and formed into an elongated bar 101. On the other hand, theshell plate 112 of the iron portion 11, the first portion 121 and thesecond portion 122 of the fulcrum portion 12, and the effort arm 132 ofthe grip portion 13 are integrated and formed into another elongated bar102. The two elongated bars 101, 102 extend across each other. In thepresent embodiment, the elongated rod 102 has a hole 140 therein for theelongated rod 101 to pass through. Furthermore, the two elongated bars101, 102 have respective side through holes 143, which are aligned witheach other at the intersection of the two elongated bars. A locking rod144 is inserted from one side and locked on the other side by a nut (notshown). The locking pin 143 is used to couple the two elongated bars toeach other. On the one hand, it also serves as a fulcrum, as well as apivoting axis. Each of the elongated bars can be made of the samematerial or even integrally formed by injection molding of plastic. Inaddition, in order to ensure that the opening and closing of the shellplates 111 and 112 can be performed within a specified range withoutbeing affected by the changing elastic force of the spring 141, andmeanwhile protecting the lifespan of the spring 141, the positioningportion 14 further includes a blocking portion 142 disposed on theelongated bar 102. In the hole 140, when the opening of the shell plates111 and 112 is large to some extent, the blocking portion 142 blocks theelongated bar 101 from being further opened.

The elongated bars 101 and 102 may be linear or other suitableconfiguration. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B,bending angles 1010 and 1020 are formed between the shell plate 111 andthe first portion 121 of the fulcrum portion 12. The bending angles 1010and 1020 are designed such that the electric heating pads 113 and 114are in a substantially parallel state so as to have better hair clampingand contact effects. Likewise, a bending angle 1012/1022 is formedbetween the effort arm 131/132 and the second portion 122 of the fulcrumportion 12, so that the two effort arms 131, 132 are substantiallyparallel in operation, which makes the hand grip easier. It also makesthe spring 141 sandwiched between the two arms more smoothly. Thebending angle 1010/1020 at the iron portion 11 and the bending angle1012/1022 at the grip portion 13 may be the same or different, dependingon the requirements of the designer or the manufacturer for the clampingangle or the holding angle or both. Furthermore, in the case where thebending angles 1010, 1020, 1012, and 1022 are equal, by making the firstportion 121 of the fulcrum portion 12 longer than the second portion122, the distance L1 between the two shell plates 111, 112 in thestandby state can be made larger than the distance L2 between the arms131, 132. As such, even if the user has a relatively small hand, theuser can still easily manipulate the hair iron with one hand. Inaddition, if a buffer mechanism, such as a cushion or a suspensionspring or other suitable buffering structure, is provided between theelectric heating pad 113 and the shell plate 111 of the presentembodiment and between the electric heating pad 114 and the shell plate112, the electric heating pad 113/114 can make a slight movement of thethree-dimensional space with respect to the shell plate 111/112, so thathair can be tightly sandwiched in the space between the electric heatingpads 113 and 114 to be heated no matter how much the hair volume is andno matter if the hair distribution is even or not. As such, the stylingefficiency and effects can be further improved.

FIG. 3A shows a schematic view of a hand-held hair iron according toanother embodiment of the present invention. The hair iron of thepresent embodiment preferably has the bending angles 1010, 1020, 1012and 1022, and some or all of the various implementation details asdescribed in the embodiment of FIG. 2. Furthermore, changes are made tothe iron portion 11 compared to that shown in the embodiment of FIG. 2.In the present embodiment, the shell plates 111 and 112 have oppositelyextending side plates 1111 and 1121, and the electric heating pads 113and 114 are respectively mounted on the side plates 1111 and 1121. Inthis embodiment, the side plates 1111 and 1121 may be part of the bodyof the shell plates 111, 112, or may be assembled to the shell plates111 and 112 during use to achieve convenient storage. Since the sideplates 1111 and 1121 suspend beyond the plane of the original elongatedbar, it is convenient to clamp and iron hair in the elongated bar in anyof the perpendicular or parallel direction. When hair 10 is clamped in adirection parallel to the elongated bar 101/102, as shown in FIG. 3B,the user does not need to open and raise his arm as in the conventionalmanner, but operates in a manner that is less laborious and does nothurt his arm. It also achieves the effect of easily controlling theironing angle.

In the above embodiment, the two elongated bars 101 and 102 areassembled in a crosswise manner, and in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4A,the two elongated bars 101 and 102 are combined in a side by sidearrangement. The two elongated bars 101 and 102 respectively have acylindrical latch 145 and a cylindrical hole 146, whose shape and sizeat the position of the fulcrum are consistent to each other. Bypenetrating the latch 145 into the cylindrical hole 146, coupling can bemade. The combination of the latch 145 and the cylindrical hole 146serves as a fulcrum and, at the same time, acts as a pivot to allow thetwo elongated bars to be pivotally coupled to each other. The side plate1111 and the latch 145 may be integrally formed with the shell plate 111and the effort arm 131, and the side plate 1121 and the circular hole146 may be integrally formed with the shell plate 112 and the effort arm132. Furthermore, at certain relative positions of the two elongatedbars 101 and 102, semi-cylindrical recesses 147 and 148 are respectivelyformed, and the opening positions and the sizes and directions of thesemi-cylindrical recesses 147 and 148 are relative to each other. Whenthe two elongated bars 101 and 102 are closed, the recesses 147 and 148can form a complete cylindrical hole having a size approximately equalto or greater than the coil size of the spring 141. One end of thespring 141 is fixed to the bottom surface of the recess 147, and theother end is fixed to the bottom surface of the recess 148. When the twoelongated bars 101, 102 are closed, the spring 141 is received in thecomplete cylindrical shape formed by the recesses 147 and 148. In thehole, when the two elongated bars 101 and 102 are separated, the ends ofthe spring 141 are pushed apart but the two elongated bars 101 and 102are still interconnected. Similar to the embodiment of FIG. 3B, thepresent hair iron as shown in FIG. 4B can be operated in a labor-savingmanner that does not hurt the user's arm.

In the above embodiments, the length of the grip portion 13 and the ironportion 11 can be designed according to actual needs. Provided that thetotal length is constant, the longer the iron portion 11 is, the morehair can be processed at one time. If the grip portion 13 is relativelylong, it can be operated in a relatively labor-saving manner.Alternatively, by reducing the size of the entire hair iron, designingthe electric heating pads with a proper size, gap, shape and angle,increasing the protective structure of the shell plates, and controllingthe current to achieve an appropriate working temperature, the hair ironcan also be used in the application of iron eyelashes, as shown in FIG.4C.

In the above embodiments, finger guiding slots may be provided in one orboth of the two effort arms 131 and 132 of the grip portion 13. Thefinger guiding slots may be, for example, external slots or internalslots, or can be combined with each other. FIG. 5 is an example in whichthe outer slot 1311 or the inner through hole slot 1321 coexist. In thisexample, the finger guiding slots include an outer slot (may also beused in plurality) and a plurality of inner slots 1321 in the effort arm131 (the inner slots can be continuous or discontinuous), and in theeffort arm 132, an internal slot 1321 is included. The size of the slotis matched with the size of a finger of a normal person. When the userholds the hair iron, the finger can be positioned at a location where aforce can be easily exerted, thereby prevent the finger from slipping.

In the above embodiments, the shell plates 111 and 112 of the ironportion 11 are substantially in the shape of flat plate, and aresuitable for directly sandwiching a hair portion to be styled, and thenretaining or pulling the hair portion down to make the hair style. Inother embodiments, the shell plates 111 and 112 of the iron portion 11may each be semi-circular, and the flat inner surfaces facing to eachother are provided with electric heating pads 113 and 114. After theshell plates 111 and 112 are closed, a cylinder that can be wrappedaround with hair for curling hair is constructed. Meanwhile, if themains supply is used, a wire passage to the electric heating pads 113,114 may be provided inside the grip portion 13 to prevent the electricwire from interfering with the rotation of the electric heating rod.

In the above-described hair iron, a safety lock can be further providedfor closing and fixing the hair iron in a non-use state, therebypreventing the iron portion 11 and the grip portion 13 from beingarbitrarily opened. FIG. 6A shows a schematic view of an embodiment of asafety lock. A hook 640 is disposed on the effort arm 131, and is placedon the effort arm 132 when the effort arms 131 and 132 are close to eachother, so that the opening of the effort arms 131 and 132 can berestricted. FIG. 6B shows another embodiment of a safety lock. In theembodiment, the inner surface of the effort arm 131 facing the effortarm 132 is provided with a protrusion 1490. One side of the protrusion1490 is provided with a hole 1491, and at a relative position on aninner surface of the effort arm 132 facing the effort arm 131, a slot isformed, and one side of the slot is provided with a gear 1492 and a setof the toothed rods 1493. The gear 1492 is partially exposed outside theeffort arm 132. When the user presses the effort arms 131 and 132 to beclose to each other to a certain extent, the protrusion 1490 enters theslot 1491. Then the user rotates the gear 1492 exposed outside theeffort arm 132 to drive the toothed rods 1493 to advance into the hole1491 of the protrusion 1490 so as to limit the opening of the arms 131and 132. Of course, if the gear 1492 is reversely rotated to drive thetoothed rods 1493 back away from the hole 1491 of the protrusion 1490,the protrusion 1490 can be disengaged from the slot, allowing the arms131 and 132 to be separated.

As can be seen from the above examples, the hair iron of the presentinvention is more intuitive and user-friendly in use, and it alsoenhances the performance of ironing.

While the invention has been described in terms of what is presentlyconsidered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is tobe understood that the invention needs not be limited to the disclosedembodiment. On the contrary, it is intended to cover variousmodifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the appended claims which are to be accorded with the broadestinterpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similarstructures.

What is claimed is:
 1. A hair iron, comprising: a first elongated barincluding a first iron portion, a first fulcrum portion and a first gripportion, wherein the first iron portion includes a first heating padwhere hair is to be ironed, and the first iron portion and the firstgrip portion are connected to and disposed at opposite sides of thefirst fulcrum portion; and a second elongated bar engaging with andpivotally rotatable relative to the first elongated bar, and including asecond iron portion, a second fulcrum portion and a second grip portion,wherein the second iron portion includes a second heating pad thatcooperates with the first heating pad to iron hair, and the second ironportion and the second grip portion are connected to and disposed atopposite sides of the second fulcrum portion, wherein a first bendingangle exists between the first iron portion and the first fulcrumportion, and a second bending angle exists between the second ironportion and the second fulcrum portion.